Construction quality control (CQC) is intended to provide a comprehensive, common and consistent framework for quality control across the various contract packages that are part of a capital construction project. CQC comprises two main elements of quality control, Testing and Inspections. Testing control covers the type of tests to be carried out, frequency of testing and stage of testing. Inspection control covers the timing of inspections, what has to be inspected and the inspection procedures.
Various site tests on materials and works are required to be carried out by the contractor during construction. This requires having a well-equipped and properly operating site test laboratory which is an important element of the quality assurance plan. To ensure that all required testing equipment are available and approved by the supervision consultant, a checklist needs to be prepared to detail the testing equipment that the contractor needs to provide at the site laboratory. This needs to be reviewed and approved at the start of the project. Laboratory equipment shall be properly calibrated, and calibration certificates should be kept at the laboratory for review by the supervision consultant, as necessary.
Using a Project Management Information System (PMIS) like PMWeb, the “Checklist of Site Testing Laboratory Equipment” can be created using PMWeb custom form builder. The checklist which will be done for the prime contractor who will be required to maintain the site test laboratory will include a table with three columns. The first column is for the testing equipment name, the second is for the type of test the equipment will be used for and the third to confirm if the right equipment is available and approved to use.
The checklist table can be modified to include other information that might be required by the supervision consultant. For example, it could include frequency of testing and stage of testing values for each type of test. In addition, it is also possible to create another checklist to detail all specialized tests that need to be done at third-party laborites.
The form attachment tab will be used to attach the details of each testing equipment that will be available is the Site Testing Laboratory as well as the specification section that lists this requirement. The attached documents will also include all calibration tests and other tests done for each equipment. It is highly recommended that all those documents to be uploaded and stored on PMWeb document repository. A folder should be created to store those documents and any revisions to be issued after the project’s start.
The Checklist of Site Testing Laboratory Equipment needs to be formally submitted to the supervision consultant to be reviewed and approved. The PMWeb workflow assigned to the checklist will map the sequence for the review and approval tasks as well as assign the role or project team member to each task.
About the Author
Bassam Samman, PMP, PSP, EVP, GPM is a Senior Project Management Consultant with 40-year service record providing project management, project controls services and project management information system to over than 200 projects with a total value in excess of US $100 Billion. Those projects included Commercial, Residential, Education and Healthcare Buildings and Infrastructure, Entertainment, Hospitality and Shopping Malls, Oil and Gas Plants and Refineries, Telecommunication and Information Technology projects. He is thoroughly experienced in complete project management including project management control systems, computerized project control software, claims analysis/prevention, risk analysis/management (contingency planning), design, supervision, training and business development.
Bassam is a frequent speaker in topics relating to Project Management, Strategic Project Management and Project Management Personal Skills. Over the past 40 years he has lectured at more than 350 events and courses at different locations in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and South America. He has written more than 300 articles on project management and project management information systems that were featured in international and regional magazines and newspapers. He is a co-founder of the Project Management Institute- Arabian Gulf Chapter (PMI-AGC) and has served on its board of directors for more than 6 years. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) from the Project Management Institute (PMI), a certified Planning and Scheduling Professional (PSP) and Earned Value Professional (EVP) from the American Association of Cost Engineers (AACE) and Green Project Management (GPM).
Bassam holds a Masters in Engineering Administration (Construction Management) with Faculty Commendation, George Washington University, Washington, D.C., USA, Bachelor in Civil Engineering – Kuwait University, Kuwait and has attended many executive management programs at Harvard Business School, Boston, USA and London Business School, London, UK.